Aluminium aerosol cans show surge in growth in 2010

Following a slight dent in demand in 2009, production of aluminium aerosol cans by AEROBAL member companies, which account for some 70 per cent of the global market, rose by 15 per cent in the first half of 2010 to about 2 billion units.

Even compared with the record year 2008 this still represents a small increase of three per cent. Whereas good demand from Asia and South America made up for volume losses in Europe in 2009, production by European manufacturers has advanced strongly along a broad front in 2010. Shipments in Europe have risen almost 17% thanks to vibrant customer demand.

The current boom is attributable to a dynamic increase in demand worldwide, especially for deodorants, hairspray, pharmaceuticals and hair mousse. This led to deodorants increasing by 19 per cent, hair sprays by 15 per cent, pharmaceutical products by 12 per cent and shaving foam by a hefty 40 per cent. “In particular, an increase in the number of relaunches and promotions by large clients coupled with the continuing trend to shaped cans has led to dynamic growth in the first half of this year,” says AEROBAL president Florian Nussbaum.

This booming development has gone hand in hand with significant price increases for raw materials and other bought-in products. For example, there have been price increases, in some cases hefty, for aluminium (including contango, premiums and processing costs for slugs), lacquers, inks and transport services, which have led to a massive squeezing of margins in the sector. In addition, the current boom in demand has led to bottlenecks in supply here and there. Coupled with the fact that orders are being placed in small lots and at short notice, this means manufacturers of aluminium aerosol cans need to exhibit a high degree of flexibility in order to utilise production capacity optimally.

The sector remains optimistic about the prospects for the rest of the year. There are currently no signs of any noticeable cooling off in demand. On the contrary: in Europe, North and South America and Asia, orders received have shown a clear upwards trend, which has already led to significantly longer delivery times in some cases. On the basis of these framework conditions, the industry is expecting a new production record worldwide in 2010.